Red Wings Embark on Longest Road Trip in Nearly Five Years

It’s been a while since the Detroit Red Wings were required to pack their bags for such a lengthy trip. A six-game sojourn on the road for Detroit begins Thursday at Columbus.

First stop – Columbus ✈️ pic.twitter.com/n63LOWbBkO

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 3, 2025

A Western swing through Seattle, Vancouver, Calgary, and Edmonton will follow that. The journey will conclude with a game in Chicago.

“These are always, I think, good for just the guys to spend more time together, and a little bit of that sort of chemistry and bonding sort of stuff is always good too,” Detroit forward James van Riemsdyk said. “And obviously, yeah, it’s a key part of our season. I think our longest road trip of the year.”

You may recall that a trip through the same four Western cities last season was part of a seven-game win streak that originally got the season turned around under the then-new coach, Todd McLellan.

“We went on this segment of the trip, or part of it, last year, and had success with the same type of schedule,” McLellan said. “So I think it’ll be good for our team to get out.

“As I said (Tuesday), we’ve been gone, but we haven’t really been gone since we got back from California and Vegas. So we’re looking forward to it.”

Been a While Since the Red Wings Were Gone This Long

This is the Red Wings’ first time embarking on a six-game trip since February 3-13, 2021. That was the so-called Covid year, in which teams were reorganized into more centralized divisions to reduce travel, and they only played games within that division.

On that particular trip, the Red Wings played two games each at Tampa Bay, Florida, and Nashville. Detroit concluded the trek with a 2-4-0 record.

Before that, they played six in a row on the road from January 2-14, 2016. However, that journey was spread over two trips. The Wings went 5-1-0.

They also played six straight games away from home from January 3-15, 2015. Again, it was divided over two trips. That time, Detroit ended up going 4-2-0.

The last time the Red Wings had this long a trip during a traditional 82-game NHL season was February 18-28, 2015. They wound up going 4-1-1 on that trek.

Practice today.
@ Columbus tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/ixe8B9Xf40

— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) December 3, 2025

In McLellan’s mind, that’s the best kind of team chemistry that can come from such a long time away from home.

“The best bonding trip is a winning one, no matter where you go,” McLellan said. “We always talk about that before we leave, and we hope it comes to fruition.

“But if you suck the whole trip, well, it’s not a lot of fun bonding like that.”